My father died three years ago, and I miss him daily. His own father was inadequate in many ways, but my dad made the choice not to carry that legacy forward, but rather to build a new one. Some of you may have had excellent fathers. Some may have had experiences similar to my dad’s. In either case I hope this encourages you to create the solid ground that your kids need to FIND THEIR WINGS, so they can fly!
This is my tribute to all the dads out in the world today. A dad has many identities, a friend, an uncle, a grandparent, an older brother, and especially an adoptive parent (my heroes)!
Barack Obama, in his 2008 Father’s Day speech, offered the following statistics:
Kids without a father in their house are:
- 5x more likely to live in poverty and commit crime.
- 9x more likely to drop out of school.
- 20x more likely to end up in prison.
- They are more likely to have behavioral problems, or run away from home or become teenage parents themselves.
What’s the bottom line?
We all need a dad!
I am going to speak from my experience of failing, learning, and growing into an improving parent. We will never be perfect, but we can surely GROW!
Check out Mark Harris’ “Find Your Wings”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OXofFc3BBpA
This lovely song encapsulates my journey, from a self-interested parent to one that truly understands that my life is to inspire my kids!
I learned through this song that my job is to help them FIND THEIR WINGS. As my wife told me for years, “It is their life and dreams, not yours”. I finally got it, and I am so thankful I realized this while my kids were still young. There was still time for me to rehabilitate my relationship with them, to heal the wounds that I had created with my excessive demands and failure to build the bonds of trust.
As I set out to rectify my mistakes, I came to understand that a key part, perhaps
the key part, of the healing process was to ask for my wife and kids’ forgiveness. This call to forgiveness, the admission of my own frailty, was both scriptural and practical. I believe this is what God commanded me to do, and it worked! I cited specific examples of things I’d done wrong, and I took visible steps towards changing course. I am beyond grateful that they all forgave me, and our lives are richer to this day for their grace. Especially mine!
It doesn’t matter where you are on your fatherhood journey, start where you are and help your kids
FIND THEIR WINGS!
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